China has canceled mandatory blogger identity registration

The China has canceled the proposal which requires all bloggers in the country to register their real identities. The government-regulated Internet Society of China (ISC) said that real-name registration would now only be "encouraged" but not required, according to the Xinhua news agency. Blog service providers will be required to take measures to ensure the privacy of those who have chosen to register so that there are no concerns over identity theft.

The proposal to require real-name registration was first brought to light last October, although the government had been mulling over it for some time before then. Under the original proposal, every person in China who wished to post to a blog or web site would have to register his or her identity with the government in order to be held responsible in cases of spreading "irresponsible and untrue information."